Royal
by FandomDream
Summary: Princess Adena of the Underworld has been kept secret long enough. And she's bringing a whole lot of chaos with her.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

Adena was eleven when she found out about a cousin from her Uncle. She had wanted to meet her; get to know the family that she had been hidden from her whole life. Her father wouldn't allow it. She could tell he was more than a little angry that his brother had sired a child - even after the pact on the River Styx (and what a hypocrite her father is) - and had already sent out monsters to chase, and hopefully kill, the Daughter of Zeus.

That was the first time she saw her father in a negative light. While the other Gods, and even the Demigods, regarded Hades as a cold and selfish bastard, she had always seen the better side of him. Her step-mother wasn't as hard on her as she had been with the other children of Hades (it probably had something to do with the fact that Adena had been in the underworld far longer than she had been on the surface), and so she had been raised like a Princess of The Underworld.

At some point, before she could remember, her step-mother had started requiring her to not call her 'step'-mother, and instead simply call her 'mother'. After all, Persephone had been the woman raising her. Adena didn't think it was all Persephone's idea, she had probably been the one to first call her 'Mother', and it had just stuck. Even if Persephone hadn't been much of a fan the first time.

She hadn't been fully sure of the story surrounding why she had been sent to the Underworld when she was clearly still living. It would be a question to ask another day, and that was assuming she'd even care later on in her life.

One could say that Adena looked unique. With one eye that seemed far more golden than brown, and one eye that was bright blue, it was the first thing one would notice about her if not for her bright auburn hair. Factor in her pale skin, and one might think that she was a deity herself.

Fast forwarding a few years, she learned of _another _cousin. This one had been accused of stealing her Uncle Zeus's Master Bolt. It was a shame that Gods were so short sighted. How could someone who didn't know about his heritage steal something he thought was myth? It was simply an obscured accusation. If the King of the Sky were a tad bit smarter, he would have seen that. Her father wasn't foolish enough to commission someone to steal the Master Bolt, either.

While he hadn't been happy about being the King of The Underworld in the beginning, he had come to accept his role in the universe. She wasn't the first to say it, and she certainly wouldn't be the last, Gods were even more creatures of habit than mortals were.

She wasn't pleased with the fact that her cousin's mother was basically being held hostage by her father, but at least they'd had some pleasant conversations in the past few weeks.

Adena wasn't supposed to be in the throne room, she knew. She preferred to ignore her father when he told her she wasn't allowed somewhere. Her father glared at her as she sat on the steps. Her cousin and his friends were almost there, and she wanted to at least greet them before they went into their deaths.

She watched as her father turned and walked into the castle, rolling her eyes. He was going to make a dramatic entrance and she was already cutting it close for her next tutoring session. She did want to see that, though. It wasn't like they got _living _visitors often. Hell, she hadn't even been to a Winter Solstice meeting and she'd known who her father is her whole life. An awkward turn of the tables. She knew who her godly parent is, but not whom her biological mother is.

As a baby, her mother had 'dropped her off' with her father. Of course, Adena did not know the details. Only that it had been for her safety. Whatever that meant.

The small specks in the distance were getting bigger. She debated on standing up to greet them, but she wasn't sure how much longer they'd be and she was on her feet so much anyway. Did she care about making a good first impression on her twelve year old cousin? Not really. They were family… technically. Even if they weren't biologically connected to one another. Being part God was exhausting.

Suddenly she felt boney hands grab her sides and she yelped in surprise. "What the heck, guys? I just want to say hello!" Of course, she got no damn response. Struggling as best as she could, she hardly noticed when she was lift up and her legs were grabbed in the process. What she did notice was the fact that fire sparked on the skeleton's heads as she struggled, and she allowed it to spread rapidly. It wasn't as though she would get burned.

The skeletons were quite used to the fiery abuse, shrugging it off and continuing to be on their way. Carrying her along to her stupid lessons. Sometimes it really sucked to have skeletons for nannies.

Of course there was a perk in arriving at the lessons. She got to hear the endless nagging of her best friend. Emma King had been bound to Adena ever since they met when the daughter of Hades was a little girl. Emma had been about nineteen when she had died in a fire and when the dead-girl had found out what exactly Adena's main power source was, they'd already been friends and Emma had already been tasked with keeping her 'safe' and 'entertained'.

Adena had been about seven when Emma had died, and had still been learning about her powers. Needless to say, Emma's rightfully earned pyrophobia had quickly been stomped out of her. Being around a child who hasn't got much control of her gift meant being around fire. A lot.

When she was still a child, she hadn't quiet understood why Emma wasn't corporal like she was. She hadn't understood that her new best friend was dead. The first time she'd woken up surrounded by flames had scared her, and that had been when her father had decided to make sure she was well aware of her power. Since then, her clothing had always been enchanted to withstand fire. Along with all of her other belongings.

She still remembered the taste of water and non-burnt food, but after the first time of accidentally lighting her room on fire as she slept had made it impossible for her drink or touch water. She had to drink liquide fire, and the kitchens always smelt like something was burning - because her food always was. It had taken some getting used to. Water caused her pain. She didn't even take regular showers anymore. Lava baths at least left her more clean.

She wasn't sure what would happen if she went to the surface. She'd probably have to learn how to deal with a little water, since it was always in the air.

"Please don't tell me that you were snooping where you don't belong." The ghost grumbled at the red-head as the daughter of Hades was dropped before her.

"Are you kidding me, guys! If my father knew that you were just dropping me left and right, guess which one of us he'd really be mad at!" Adena shouted over her shoulder as the skeletons made their way back to the castle. Looking back at the ghost, she snorted at the statement. "I did nothing wrong. I was simply trying to meet family. What is wrong with that."

Raising an eyebrow, the ghost crossed her arms. "First of all, most of your family will likely want you dead. Second, your father is disliked by most of them. Third, your not allowed to leave so why would you be allowed to meet outsiders?"

"Because I'm perfect, duh." Adena stated sarcastically as she stood up and brushed herself off. Today's lesson was going to be just delightful with the fact that she was already distracted.

It was the one subject she couldn't get better at, no matter how hard she tried. Art, while she appreciated it, was the bane of her existence. Aside from music. She was good at that. But that wasn't what they were supposed to be focusing on today. Instead, her father wanted her to increase her painting skills. A five year old could paint better than she could.

Though she reluctantly got her things together, her focus was not on painting in the slightest. Rather, she was thinking of getting out. Of leaving the Underworld. It wasn't a decision that was easy for her to make, or think through. She knew if she didn't leave soon, then she wouldn't want to leave anymore.

Her home was here, as was her father and everything she knew in life. Out in the world. That was a complete mystery. Besides the fact that there were monsters that would want to eat her. How could she just leave?

On the other hand, did she really want to feel like a prisoner in her own home? Constantly told that the outside world was too dangerous? She had been taught to fight pretty much ever since she could walk.

"We're leaving." She whispered to Emma, who in turn looked at her with wide eyes. "Well, I'll go on my own if you don't come." Adena stated matter-of-factly.

In response, Emma first snorted and shook her head. "We can't just leave. What are we going to do, say 'Hi, Charon. We need to borrow your boat real quick.'? Can you even get on boats?"

That was a fair point. Water was Poseidon's territory. And falling in the water was certainly not ideal for Adena.

"I don't think it's the same type of water that could hurt me." It was magical water after all. Wasn't it some kind of living being? Or was that a different river? Either way, she didn't think that Poseidon had any control over said river anyway. "Even if it could hurt me, that doesn't mean I'll fall in."

"How would we get a boat. Charon would never forgive you if you steal one." Emma said, entertaining the idea that was likely to fail.

Adena thought that over as she put her canvas up and listened as her teacher babbled on for a while before toning him out helped her thought process. "He keeps ranting about a stupid raise. Perhaps leaving him some money for a new suit would keep him quiet. That old one of his seems way out-dated anyway." That earned her a look from the ghost who was raised in the 80's. "What? It's true."

That earned yet another snort. "None of you can see the genius of the 80's." The ghost muttered with annoyance.

"To be fair, there are ghosts here that come from way older times. My father comes from way older times. Don't take it too personally." Adena said with a light shrug. "I need to get out there. See the world, meet some of my family. Interact. I've never even seen the sun. That seems like a crime on its own."

Instead of a snort, she earned an exasperated groan. "Oh, come on. Your father will send me right to the fields of punishment. Do you see me there? I'd get eaten alive!" She exclaimed, earning a strange look from Adena's tutor. But the tutor just sighed and kept talking.

"You should shout like that more often during my lessons. Makes things more interesting." Adena muttered with only slight sarcasm. It felt like the lesson had already went on for far too long. And it had only been a few minutes.

Emma shook her head once more. "We are so dead."

"You're already dead."

Her friend, being ever the optimistic, responded, "And you aren't. Yet."


	2. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Just under a year later, Adena was ready to set her plan in motion. They weren't going to go through the normal entrance, since there was one closer to New York instead of going through Hollywood. She was excited to see the world. To live with living humans instead of ones that were dead. Either just, or long since.

She was excited to finally be leaving, even if it tore her up quite a bit. If it was just her traveling, it would've been much easier to come and go as she pleased. But with her best friend and her wolf familiar, she couldn't use her fire-traveling to leave. Shadow-traveling caused her to pass out after a few second, and while she liked her fire power, shadows were hard for her to even go through at all.

When she was younger, before she'd discovered she could travel by fire, she had tried to travel through the shadows a few times. Getting lost a couple times, and waking up in unfamiliar places, had deterred her from trying again.

She hadn't even gotten herself home each time. Her father had needed to rescue her. She didn't like depending on someone else to get her out of problems she'd gotten herself into. Pride, a real thing in this family. Look at Zeus. And Poseidon. And literally all of the family.

Adena, looking back, was actually mildly surprised that her father hadn't insisted that she learn how to control that part of her heritage. He made sure she learned everything else - including modern geography. And all the other subjects she needed to know, but neither of them thought they would be any use. After all, she wasn't going to be visiting the surface anytime soon.

Joke was on him. She did feel the rush of freedom as she looked around the Underworld once more. Possibly the last time for a long while.

A few months after she turned ten, she had found out that she could teleport through fire. Of course it came as a surprise considering that she was dreadful at shadow-traveling. But the difference was that this new form of travel came far more easily to her. Almost like second nature, as if she was one with the fire itself. It was still exhausting, but it took longer for her to feel weakened. With age, it had become less and less exhausting.

It had come when she'd been wanting to visit some of her ghostly friends in the Asphodel Meadows. She had been playing with her powers, which she hadn't fully been in control yet, when she had felt a burning wind pass over her and in the blink of an eye, she had been standing in front of some very shocked ghosts. Not the ones she had been wanting to see, of course, but the look of absolute horror on their transparent faces for a split second was absolutely worth the new discovery.

Another time, before she'd fully managed to learn how to use the new form of travel, she had been eating and wanted to torment some already tortured souls. It wasn't as simple as it had been the first time. She wasn't going to a safe place, with good people, but instead was going to a place where the worst kinds of people were kept.

Once again the fiery wind consumed her before releasing her in the Fields of Punishment. That hadn't been nearly as amusing. To her horror, the food that had been in her hand was simply ashes now. From then on she was determined to control this power, not allowing herself to even try fire-travelling with a living being. Though it was unlikely that a ghost would get through the fire either. She hadn't dared try.

"Do you have everything you need?" Emma asked for the thousandth time. Adena knew that her best friend was just being overly cautious. It didn't help her confidence in the plan. Not even a little. She wondered if Emma knew that, and was trying to make her think on this longer than she already had.

"Of course." She responded. She did. Maybe. Possibly. Probably not. Thinking things through wasn't really her style anyway, and she could only carry so much. She wasn't going to ask Emma to carry anything. If she couldn't fit what she needed into one bag, then she didn't need it. Most likely. She'd never been anywhere that she just couldn't pop back home to grab what she needed.

Well, there was one thing that she couldn't carry, and she wasn't about to leave that behind. Looking around quickly, she bit her lip. "Where is she?" The daughter of Hades muttered.

"Maybe she ran away from your stupid plan." Emma muttered quietly, and thus it was Adena's turn to snort at a stupid comment.

Hearing footsteps approaching, she knew immediately that those were not the sounds of humanoid feet running. With a smile, she peaked around the corner to catch sight of the grey wolf trotting down the hall. "Here Fia, come on girl." She called over softly. Gently placing her forehead on the wolf's in greeting, she smiled smugly at Emma and they were on their way.

There were so many memories tied to this place that they were about to leave behind. She remembered when she had been given Fia. A gift from the god Hermes, a frequent visitor of the Underworld and the only other deity to know of her existence. For now, that is.

Hermes and Adena had a good relationship from all the years of getting to know each other while he was delivering messages and gifts to the Underworld. She even considered him to be a good friend. It was nice to hear about his travels, about the world that she was missing out on. But that was not her current situation, and she needed to remain focused.

One thing that Adena was really grateful for? Her travelling companions were not loud. That would have sucked. Quickly going through the hallways, it seemed strangely quiet today. Less guards. The perfect day to sneak out. At least it would be less of a task than Adena had been worrying about for forever.

It hadn't taken long to get out of the castle. Though Adena was sad that they couldn't bring Cerberus with her. But the three headed dog was the guardian of the Underworld… and everyone would certainly notice the giant dog to be missing. Everyone.

What was strange was the absence of guards at the boats. A very strange day indeed. Could she really be this lucky? Really? Perhaps she would need to ask her father about security when she came back. One would think that such a thing would be important. Wouldn't want too many wandering spirits in the world of the living. From what she's heard, that's how horror movies start.

Staring at the boat, her stomach began doing imaginary flips. What if she really did fall out and drowned while being burned alive? What if the boat crashed itself by the sheer will of Poseidon? There were so many thoughts rushing through her head.

"Come on. You dragged me out here, you are not chickening out on me now." Emma snapped, breaking through the fog that had filled Adena's head. The fog of nerves that were still making her nervous to get on the damn boat.

"I could die." She mumbled.

"... If you don't get on this boat right now, you will die. I will personally kill you. Fields of Punishment be damned."

"Take a chill pill, Emma."

The look Emma gave her told Adena that she was very lucky that she actually couldn't murder anyone at this point in time. And that she would soon be looking for a way to kill her. "I will not take a chill pill! Get on the damn boat or I swear that I'll find a way to drown you."

While unwilling, Adena finally climbed on the boat and held on almost too tight to her poor wolf. Fia placed her head on Adena's as the child of Hades closed her eyes. They guided the boat to the river Oceanus, which encircled the world. Hopefully it would lead them somewhere ideal.

Thankfully the journey wasn't too long on the boat. For if it had been, Adena would certainly have lost her mind to nerves. "We're ditching the boat when we get to the surface. I am not putting myself through any more of this!" She exclaimed after a while. Her fears were really beginning to get to her as the ride went on. It was even making Fia nervous.

"Calm down, we'll be their soon." Emma said with a sigh. She knew that her fiery friend was not faking this, or being over dramatic. Which made this harder. How the heck was this girl going to handle rain?

Finally they came out of the cave to a place filled with pine trees, the sun shining through the branches. "Where are we?" Emma mumbled, causing Adena to open her eyes.

"I don't know, but let's get off of this thing and find out."

What both girls did not know was that the river lead directly into the lake of Montauk. But Adena did know that she felt a pull to go one way, and she looked in that way as they guided the boat to shore. "We should go that way." She stated simply.

"Oh? And how do you know that?" Emma muttered.

"Just… a gut feeling." Perhaps it would lead to a good place, or to danger. But she knew that she could face a little danger. Eyeing the bracelet on her wrist, she was quite glad for the other gift that she had received from Hermes.


End file.
